


Meeting You

by Aftrlife14



Category: No Fandom, Original Work
Genre: F/M, Original Character Death(s), Original Character(s), Original Fiction, POV Original Character, Teen Romance, Tragic Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-03
Updated: 2016-02-02
Packaged: 2018-04-12 19:51:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,278
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4492488
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aftrlife14/pseuds/Aftrlife14
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Jack Stone woke up on his eighteenth birthday, he could tell something was off. He could feel someone watching him, and from that day on, nothing was the same</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Watcher

One Year B.N. (Before Now)  
I woke up, and I could feel you.  
I couldn't tell it was you at first. I really couldn't even tell it was someone at first. All I knew is that somehow, in a way, I felt different. Like for the first time in my life, I wasn't alone.  
Of course, I tried to shrug off this feeling. "Maybe I just got a good night's sleep for once." I said to myself as I rolled out of bed. But somewhere deep inside, I knew that wasn't it.   
As I got dressed in a simple blue t-shirt and jeans, getting ready for school, I listened closely to the sounds emanating from the rest of the house. There was the washing machine, which meant mom was gone. That was always the last thing she did before leaving for work: start the washing machine.   
And there was the creaking of Judith's, my sister, mattress, which meant her boyfriend, Damian, was over. She's in college, so she basically has the house to herself on the days she doesn't have classes.   
"Keep it down!" I yelled, shrugging into a faded old gray jacket.   
"Shut up, Jack!" Came my sister's voice. Confirmation: Damian was here. If he wasn't, she would have ignored me.   
"Hi, Damian!" I yelled.   
"Sup, Jack!" Damian's high pitched, almost feminine voice came through the walls. He and I got along fairly well, which is more than I can say for most people.  
I slipped on my shoes, grabbed my backpack, and headed down the hall and out the front door, locking it behind me. It was chilly outside, which was normal for a Friday morning in late October, and the frigid air made goosebumps on my skin. As I headed down the driveway, adjusting my backpack so it's not so awkward, I try to plan out the day ahead. If everything goes to plan, which it normally does, I'll go to school, suffer through my AP Biology class, then go about the rest of my day in a haze, barely paying enough attention to take notes.   
After school, I'll hit the record store downtown, the Vinyl Place, or as I called it, the Place.   
I reach into the mailbox, searching for anything specifically for me. There was one, from a P.O box in Michigan.   
"Must be dad's latest stop." I muttered, ripping open the letter. Inside was a convenience store birthday card, with the generic "wish you a happy birthday" crap.  
'Oh yeah.' I think. 'It's my birthday.' October 27th. I turned eighteen today.  
Normal people get excited on their birthdays. Not me. Not since I was seven. Not since dad left.   
On the bright side, the card contained a $50 gift card to the Place, which meant a new record for me.   
Sweet. Greenday, here I come.  
I pulled my wallet out of my backpack, along with my phone. Slipping the gift card into my wallet, I make a call to the local pizza place.   
"Hello, this is Billy's Pizza, how may I help you?" A perky young voice comes through the phone.   
"Yeah," I said. "It's Jack. I need the usual."  
"Oh, hey Jack. Same place and time?"  
"You know it."  
"No problem. I'll see you there."  
"Thanks."  
And with that, I hang up, putting both my wallet and phone in the pocket of my jacket, and started on the two mile walk to school.   
I'm a senior at the J. Graham Brown School in Louisville, Kentucky. You can't go anywhere in this city without seeing the name "J. Graham Brown." He had a school, theatre, hotel, and hospital named after him. I don't even know who he is.  
About half way to school, I could feel you again, and I turned, expecting someone to be there, following me. Of course, there wasn't. I spent the rest of the walk watching over my shoulder for anyone.   
When I got to school, it was just about 6:30, and the doors had just opened. I was always the first person here, other than the night staff, and I loved it. Right before I walked in, though, the car from Billy's Pizza pulled up, and Billy himself popped out of the driver's seat.  
"Yo, Jackster!" Billy said, pulling the box out of the passenger seat.   
"I've told you not to call me that." I sighed.   
"Yeah, I know. Five bucks."  
Billy wasn't the smartest guy, but he was always straight to the point.   
I paid him, then a thought popped into my head. "Billy, does it feel like we're being watched?"  
He stopped, the driver door open, and hesitated before nodding and looking around, eyes narrowed. Then he shrugged. "Hey man, sometimes you just feel like that."  
"I guess." I said doubtfully.  
We said the briefest of goodbyes, and I walked inside, where half the lights in the lobby were still off.   
I made my way over to the back corner of the lobby where I spend the hour and a half before school starts. As always, I sat down, pushed my bag against the wall, and leaned up against it. This was my favorite time of day. The sun wasn't up yet, the building was quiet, and I was alone with my giant cookie. My headphones went in, and I searched my music for my Evanescence playlist. With that playing, I ate my cookie and relaxed in the calm before the storm, pondering the odd feeling I’d had that morning.

 

 

 

 

 

I survived through the school day without the feeling of being watched. That ended the moment I walked out of the building. The moment I stepped foot outside, I could feel you again, watching me.  
Trying to ignore you, I left the school, heading towards main street, then west, down past the science center. After walking for about fifteen minutes, I came to the Place.  
Still able to feel your eyes following me, I took another look around, but there was no one in sight. I shuddered and stepped inside.  
This was possibly my favorite place in Louisville. It was small, secluded, and not at all busy. As far as I could tell, I was their only regular. The cashier, a pretty brunette girl named Sophia, recognised me when I stepped in. Sophia is my best friend, and knows more about me than anyone else does, and probably ever will.   
"Hey Sophia." I said, smiling a bit.  
"Hey Stone." She replied, giggling. She was one of those people who calls other people by their last name, and I was no exception.   
"What's so funny?" I asked, walking up to the counter.   
"Your name always cracks me up." She smirked. "It sounds like it belongs to a big tough mob boss, but instead, you have it, ya scrawny dork."  
I shrugged, looking down at my indeed scrawny form.  
"Hey, whatever gives me a good rep." I laugh.   
"Yeah right." She giggled again.   
"Anyway," I said, getting to why I was there. "You got any new Green Day stuff? Maybe some P!ATD?"  
"Green Day, yeah." She nodded, walking out from behind the counter and past me. I followed, and she lead me into the back of the store.   
"Technically," she said, bending over to rummage through a few boxes. "We aren't supposed to start selling these til Friday, but I'll let you get it since you're basically the reason this place is still in business."  
"Well this one's on Dad." I pulled my wallet out, and got out the gift card. "It's my birthday, and he sent me this from Michigan."  
She stood up, the record in hand, looking puzzled. "But this is our only location, and we don't sell gift cards online. He had to have come here to get it. How much is on it?"  
"Fifty bucks." I said, a sinking feeling starting to grow in the pit of my stomach.  
"Oh hun..." She said, her face now laced with traces of reluctance and sympathy. "A guy came in here about a week back and bought a fifty dollar card. Is your dad about half a foot taller than you, with black hair and a beard. Bright blue eyes?"  
"He was here." I whispered, my heart falling into my stomach.  
"Oh hun..." She repeated, sorrow and sympathy in her voice, standing up on her tip-toes to kiss my cheek. "I'm sorry."  
I was a bit shocked by the kiss, but was too distracted to really react.   
"Whatever." I said gruffly. "It's not like I care." I really wish I was a better liar.  
She smiled sadly and handed me the record. "Come on, let's go get you this record, and then we can listen to it together, m'kay?"  
"Yeah." I nodded quietly, stepping back out into the main part of the store. She stepped out and locked the door, then lead me back to the register.   
As we walked, I was unfocused, and when I finally paid attention to what I was looking at, I realised I had been watching the way her hips swayed as she walked.   
I immediately blushed and looked away, clearing my throat.   
She looked back with an eyebrow raised. "Something wrong?"  
"Just- ah- just something caught in my throat."  
"Mhm." She smirked. I immediately assumed that she somehow knew exactly what happened, and that made me blush all the harder.   
She laughed a full, rich laugh, which was very different from her earlier giggle.   
When we got up front, she stepped behind the register and took the record back, scanning it. "Ten dollars even." She said, handing it back to me. I handed her the card, and she swiped it, then handed it back.   
I put it back in my wallet, and pulled out a five dollar bill, handing it to her.   
She took it with a small smirk and a raised eyebrow. "This for the record, or the kiss? Cuz you don't have to pay me to kiss your handsome face." She joked.   
I rolled my eyes, sighing. "Oh how my beauty is a curse." I said sarcastically.   
She giggled like earlier, and stepped back out from behind the counter. "You're preaching to the choir, Stone. Now come on, we got a record to listen to."  
"Uh, I'll meet you at the record player. I gotta make a call real quick."  
"Sure." She shrugged, walking towards the player. Again, my eyes wandered to her hips, and this time she caught me looking. Again I blushed, and again she laughed that rich laugh, throwing a wink my way. That only made me blush more, and I turned away, pulling out my phone and calling my sister.   
She picked up on the third ring.  
"Hel-" I cut her off.   
"Dad was here." I said simply.   
"What?! Where?"  
"The Place. He sent me a fifty dollar gift card for here, and Sophia said he came in and bought one. He was here, Judith." My voice caught in my throat.   
"The rat bastard." She muttered angrily. "He could have stopped by."  
"You know he doesn't care enough to do that." I said quietly.   
"Yeah... I know." She sighed. "When are you coming home?"  
I checked my watch. It was four o'clock.   
"Around six or seven. Me and Sophia are gonna listen to the new Green Day record."  
"Got it. I'll let mom know."  
"Thanks." And I hung up and put my phone away with a sigh.   
That's when a pair of slender arms wrapped around my chest from behind, and Sophia's head rested on my back. "I'm sorry, Jack." She said quietly.   
My breath caught in my throat. She never called me by my first name. Never. She must really feel sorry for me.  
"I'm fine." I said as she let me go and I turned around with a forced smile. "Now how about some music?"  
"Of course." She smiled, turning and leading me towards the record player. This time I forced myself not to look at her hips.   
The Place had a record player where people could sample the music, and a single large bean bag for people to lounge on. I pulled the record out of its sleeve, and put it on the player, turning it on and turning the volume up about halfway. Loud enough to be heard, but not too loud that we couldn't talk.   
As the music started playing, I turned back to Sophia to find that she had gotten her purse, and was already lounging on the beanbag with one leg crossed over the other. I sat down next to her, causing her side of the bag to move up a bit.   
"So." She said quietly. "How you feeling?"  
"Fine." I lied.   
"Don't lie to me, Stone."  
I sighed. "Okay. I feel like shit. My dad was here, and he didn't even bother to come say hi. What kind of father does that?"  
"A shitty one." Was her answer. "But I know what'll make you feel better."  
"What's that?" I asked.   
Instead of answering, she simply reached into her purse and pulled out a lighter, and a few joints.  
"You know me so well." I said quietly, taking one from her.   
She stuck one between her lips and lit it, drawing on it deeply before passing me the lighter. I immediately did the same, and together we breathed out a cloud of thick smoke that dissipated quickly.  
A few minutes and more than a few joints passed with only the sounds of Green Day before Sophia spoke.   
"Stone." She said, sounding and looking very mellow.  
"Yeah?" I asked, looking over.   
"Kiss me."   
"What?" I asked, confused.   
"Kiss me." She repeated.   
"But Sophia... We're just friends." I said slowly, having to think through my words.   
"So? Friends kiss friends, right?"  
"I... I don't think so."  
"Oh... Well do it anyway."  
Given my high, it didn't take much to convince me. "Okay."  
I had to close my eyes and prepare myself. Then I leaned in and put my lips on hers. Almost immediately a cloud of smoke filled my mouth, and I pulled back, coughing. Apparently while I'd had my eyes closed, she'd taken a draw off the joint and decided to blow it into my mouth. When I finally caught my breath, she was cracking up, bent over with a hand on her stomach.   
"That was mean." I pouted, bottom lip sticking out. "Were you planning that?"  
She nodded and slowly stopped laughing, leaning back and taking a deep breath.   
"You know," she said, smiling a bit. "You're not a bad kisser."  
"I don't see how you could know, since it was for less than a second." I sassed.  
"Mm. Then I need to find out. Come here." Suddenly she grabbed the front of my shirt and pulled me in, kissing me for real this time. I didn't object, and closed my eyes, enjoying the sensation.   
Eventually she pulled back, having to breathe.   
"I was right." She said, smiling a bit goofily. I'm sure I had the same look on my face, because she started laughing again.   
“Mmm…” She said quietly. “We should do that more often.”  
“Agreed.” I nodded, taking one last, long draw off the last joint as I checked my watch. It was only 5:00.  
"You know..." I said slowly, still having to think through my words. "I still have at least an hour before I leave... Do you wanna...." I trailed off, expecting her to know what I'm talking about.   
"Do I wanna what? Hun, I'm in no shape to think."  
"Wanna kiss again?"   
There was a pause. "Sure." She said.   
And that was that. The next hour was spent sharing short kisses, and listening to the amazing sounds that are Green Day. Eventually, after we had both come down off our high, I stood up to go, taking my record off the player and putting it back in the sleeve.  
“I gotta head out.” I said, turning back to Sophia, who was still lazing around on the beanbag.  
“Whatever you say, Stone.” She smirked. I couldn’t help but notice that at some point since we sat down that her shirt had come up a little, showing off her stomach. I blushed and averted my eyes.  
“So…” I said quietly, looking at my feet.  
“So.” She said, a trace of a laugh in her voice.  
"Did... Did this mean something?" I asked.   
She stood up and sauntered over to me, hips swaying. I could tell this time that the sway was on purpose, but damn... It was hot.  
"Yes." She said, putting both her hands on my chest and smiling up at me. "Yes it did."  
Then she reached up with one hand and pulled my head down, kissing me again.   
When she pulled back, I started grinning. She walked with me to the door, and I opened it. But before I stepped out, I looked at her. "Did my best friend just turn into my girlfriend?" I asked, a bit nervously.  
"Yes." She smirked. "Yes she did."  
With a smile, and without another word, I stepped outside and made my way back home.


	2. November 3rd, 11 months 3 weeks B.N.

November 3rd, 11 months, 3 weeks B.N.  
A week after I got together with Sophia, we had a date planned for that Friday. Of course, my mother was ecstatic that we had finally gotten together, as she'd been telling me we'd be a good match since I first started becoming interested in girls. Sophia and I had known each other since we were little, having been next door neighbors up until we were sixteen. Then her family moved, but that wasn't a problem. We both could drive, and were able to still hang out very often.  
But now it was different. Now we were actually dating. Really the only change I could detect was that instead of calling the time we spent together hanging out, we now called it "dates."  
And the kisses. The kisses were definitely a big difference.  
Anyway, I went through that entire week without the feeling of your eyes on me. But as I woke up on that bright Saturday morning, I could tell you were back. And it made me uneasy.  
I got up, showered, put on deodorant, and basically did all the things one does before one goes on a date. We weren't planning on going anywhere fancy. In fact, just the opposite. We were going out into the forest down in Bullitt County, where my grandparents live. Some cell phone company had built one of their towers on their land (paying them for it, of course), and had given my family special permission to go near it that no one else had. Anyway, what Sophia didn't know was that I was bringing us a picnic basket full of sandwiches, drinks, and most importantly: weed.  
When I was finally finished getting ready, I was wearing boot-cut jeans, a loose gray t-shirt, and my old gray jacket. After saying goodbye to my mom, I took the picnic basket, complete with blanket to sit on, and went out to my truck, a beat up old ford pickup. I put the basket behind the seat, out of sight, wanting it to be secret until we got there.  
"Shit." I said, as I remembered something important. Running back inside, I waved to mom and headed upstairs. Sitting beside my bed was my old six string box top guitar that I had gotten for my thirteenth birthday. I firmly believe that every boy gets a guitar at some point in his life, but only a few learned how to play it. I was one of those few. Quickly putting it in its case, I carried back outside with me, putting it in the passenger seat.  
Just before I got in the car, I took a final look around, trying to find the damn person who was watching me (meaning you, of course). Of course, I couldn't, and I got in and shut the door.  
Sophia didn’t live more than fifteen minutes away, so not long after I left my house, I was pulling into the driveway of hers. Parking behind her dad’s sleek black Mercedes, I shut off the engine and got out, stretching. After staring at the Mercedes (man I was so jealous of Mr. Owens), I walked up the stairs to the porch and knocked on the door.  
After a few moments, it was opened by Sophia’s mother, Sandra. She was a short blonde woman, who’s eyes barely reached my chest.  
“Oh hi Jack!” She said, smiling warmly. “Sophia’s still getting ready, so you can wait for her in the living room.”  
“Thank you.” I nodded politely. Mrs. Owens had always been kind to me and my family. Her generosity was one of the reasons my family didn’t go bankrupt when Dad suddenly left. She always had some excuse for the surprise meals she would cook. “Oh, I was just trying out a new recipe.” She would say. But thanks to Sophia, I knew the truth. That she wanted more than anything to help us. And for that, I’m eternally grateful.  
Mrs. Owens stepped aside, and I walked in, making my way to the living room. I knew this place almost as well as I did my own house. When I got there, I found Mr. Owens, Daniel, waiting for me, a small smile on his face. I hadn’t talked to him since Sophia and I had gotten together, but I knew that eventually I would have to face the man whose daughter I was now dating.  
“Hello Jack.” Daniel said, patting the couch next to him. “Why don’t you have a seat?”  
“Hi, Mr. Owens.” I said, sitting next to him. “How are you?”  
“Let’s skip the chit-chat.” He said, smile fading.  
“I knew it.” I sighed.  
“Knew what?” He asked, raising an eyebrow.  
“Knew that when I came here we’d have the ‘if you hurt my daughter I’ll bury you’ conversation.”  
“You’re a smart kid, Jack. Always have been.”  
“Not really.”  
“Don’t sell yourself short.”  
“Have you seen my grades?”  
“As a matter of fact, Sophia showed me. I know exactly what they are. And I know that it’s not a matter of intelligence. It’s a matter of effort.”  
I wanted to argue, but deep down, I knew he was right.  
“Jack,” Mr. Owens continued. “I know you and Sophia have been friends for a long time, but that-” At that point I stopped listening, because I could suddenly very strongly feel your eyes on me. I quickly turned around, scanning the room and looking out of the windows, trying to find who was watching me.  
“Jack?” I heard Mr. Owens say, snapping me back to reality.  
“Hm?” I said, looking back at him.  
“Are you alright, son?”  
“What? Yeah, I’m fine.”  
“You sure-”  
“Daaaaaad.” A familiar voice whined, cutting him off. I turned to look, and there was Sophia, wearing a little pink sundress with tiny cartoon black skulls all across it. She walked over and wrapped her arms around her dad’s shoulders, pouting. “Leave him alone.” She said, looking down at him.  
“I’m just saying, darling.” Mr. Owen chuckled.  
“You don’t need to say. It’s Jack, you know him!”  
“Yeah, I do.”  
Sophia let go and turned to me, smiling a bit. “I’m ready!” She giggled, and I stood up, smiling.  
“Then let’s go.” I said, taking her hand.  
“Bye Daddy! Bye Momma!” She said, before quickly leading me out of the house.  
“I’m sorry about him.” She sighed as we walked to my truck.  
“It’s fine.” I laughed, getting in as she walked around to the passenger side. When she got in, she caught sight of the guitar and raised an eyebrow.  
“Learn a new song?” She asked.  
“Yep. One of your favorites.”  
Her eyes lit up. “Which one?” She asked excitedly.  
“You’ll find out.” I smirked.  
“Awww.” She pouted, moving the guitar over so she could sit in the middle by me. I made sure she buckled her seatbelt on and pulled out of the driveway and hit I-65 towards Bullitt County. Sophia spent the entire ride trying to get me to tell her which song I had learned.  
“Tell meeee.” She whined, taking my hand and playing with my fingers.  
“Nah. You’ll just have to wait.”  
She huffed and went silent. Then a few minutes later she tried again.  
“Stone.”  
“Yeah?”  
“Tell me or I won’t kiss you.”  
“Okay.”  
“Really?”  
“No.”  
“Ugggggh.”  
“You’ll live.” I laughed, pulling off an exit ramp and heading towards my grandparents house.  
She pouted. “Pleaaaase?”  
“Nah.”  
“Ugh, fine.” After a few minutes of riding and listening to the radio, we reached my grandparent’s house. It was a log cabin, with a gravel driveway. They had a gigantic yard that spread over two acres. On one side of the yard ran a gravel road going up the hill to the top, where a big red cell tower stood, the only thing breaking the view.  
“Reach behind the seat.” I said, pulling onto the road. She did as I asked, and pulled out the picnic basket. When she caught sight of it she got a small smile. “Really? A picnic at the top of a hill? How cheesy can you get?”  
I pouted a bit. “I thought it was nice. Besides, I’m hungry.”  
She laughed. “It is nice.”  
“Then why did you say it was cheesy?”  
“Because it is. But that doesn’t mean it’s not nice.”  
“You confuse me sometimes.”  
“I know.” She patted my cheek. “I’m supposed to.”  
We pulled up to the top of the hill, and I parked the truck next to the tower. You couldn’t see it from the bottom, but the bottom of the tower was surrounded by a chain link fence topped with barbed wire. I parked about twenty feet away and hopped out, grabbing my guitar. Sophia followed me out, holding the picnic basket.  
I led her to the back of the truck and dropped the tailgate, hopping up and grabbing the blanket out of the basket Sophia was holding. I handed her my guitar and laid the blanket across the bed, making it more comfortable. She put the basket and guitar on the blanket, then held up her hands. I reached down and took her hands, pulling her up with a grin.  
We both sat, leaning up against the back of the cab, the picnic basket on my lap.  
“So, I packed a few things.” I said, pulling things out.  
“Sandwiches, soda.” Then I pulled out the final thing and grinned.  
“Weed.” She laughed, as I was holding about ten joints in my hand.  
“Weed.” I nodded. “But that’s for after.”  
“After I play that song I promised.”  
Her eyes lit up again. “Finally! What song is it?”  
“You’ll know.” Taking my guitar out of its case, I pulled my pick out of my pocket, holding the guitar across my lap.  
“You ready?” I ask, smiling over at her. She nodded, and I started playing the opening notes to One Thing by Finger Eleven.  
She grinned widely, and when I got to the part where the vocals came in, she started singing in a sweet, soft voice. For the next three or four minutes we played the song, and after it was done, I leaned back against the back of the cab, looking over at her. She was laughing quietly, eyes closed.  
“That was great.” She laughed, opening her dark green eyes. “You’re really amazing, you know that?”  
“I try.” I smirked.  
“Well it works.” She smiled, leaning over to kiss me gently.  
“I see that.” I grin. “Now for the main event.”  
“Weed?”  
“Weed.”  
“Finally.”  
I laughed and pulled out ten joints, handing half of them to her. She pulled out a lighter from her purse, and lit one before handing to me. I did the same, and pulled a long drag, filling my lungs and brain with the sweet feeling.  
I closed my eyes and exhaled slowly, feeling the smoke blowing over my face in the wind. Opening my eyes, I look over to Sophia, and find her eyes closed, chest puffed out, and her lungs presumably full. After a second or two, she exhaled as well, smoke cascading over her face.  
She opened her eyes and looked over at me.  
"What're you looking at?" She asked with a small smirk.  
"You." I replied, matching her smirk.  
"Why?"  
"Cuz I can."  
"Oh."  
There was a pause, and she started laughing. After a minute so did I.  
That is, until I felt a cold chill ran down my spine, bringing the feeling of your eyes back to the front of my mind. I quickly hop out of the back of the truck, circling it, trying to find you. Of course I didn't see anything.  
"Stone?" I heard Sophia call.  
"Yeah?" I said distractedly, still searching.  
"What're you doing? Is something wrong?"  
It was then that I decided to come clean with her. I made my way to side of the truck next to her.  
"This is going to sound crazy, but I need you to listen, okay?"  
"Jack, just start talking. When people say things like that I get worried."  
"Okay, okay. It's just... I feel like there's someone watching me."  
She looked surprised. "That's it? Really?"  
"Let me finish. I've felt like that all day, since I woke up. And it isn't the first time. I felt it last week, while we were at the Place."  
She frowned, her brow furrowing. "What do you mean?"  
"I mean I think I'm being stalked." I said.  
"What? That doesn't make sense. Why would somebody stalk you?"  
"If I knew that do you think I would let them stalk me?”  
“Fair enough, but that still doesn’t answer the que-”  
At that moment, I thought I could hear a voice (your voice, I know now), and I shushed her, cutting her off mid word. There were long minutes of silence in which I didn’t hear anything again, and I turned back to Sophia, who was looking both spooked and frustrated.  
“Jack, can’t we just go?.” She asked quietly, almost whispering.  
"Yeah." I nodded slowly. "Get in..." She did so, and I did too, driving back down the hill and onto the road.  
After a few minutes, I sighed, taking her hand. "I'm sorry. This was supposed to be fun."  
"It's okay." She replied, squeezing my hand. "We can still go to a movie or something and save the date."  
"Yeah." I smile. "We can. What do you want to see?"  
"Dunno. Whatever is starting soon."  
"Sounds like a plan." I nodded, making my way towards the nearest movie theatre.  
The movie ended up being a horror film, with a serial killer and lots of blood and gore. A good time, basically. When we got outside, I had to blink and squint my eyes to get used to the sudden bright light of the sun. I noticed Sophia was doing the same, blocking the afternoon sun with her hand.  
"Now I'm hungry." She said suddenly as we walked to the truck.  
"But we just ate." I laughed.  
"We were high and those were snacks for the munchies. Now I'm hungry hungry."  
"Fair enough." I laughed as we got in the truck. “What do you want?” But even as I asked, a now all too familiar shiver ran down my spine, and I looked around, trying once again to find the eyes that were watching me. The eyes that belonged to you.  
As I got in the truck, I made myself a promise. I would find whoever was watching me, and find out why.  
Whatever the cost.


End file.
